Siren

Boldness in Spell Restrictions

I just listened to your restrictions podcast. But restricted spell casting and even abilities were baked into the game in Alpha, Sirens Call, Camouflage, False Orders could only be played at specific times, Neteling Imp could only be activated at a specific time and Veteran Body Guard only dud his Kevin Cosner impression if untapped. Not to mention the interupt, instant and sorcery timing rules.

There have always been restrictions. We’ve just been more bold in where and how often we can use them.

Camouflage Drive to Work False Orders Imp Instants Rules Siren Sorceries

Hermitic Nautilus Praise

Can you give whoever designed Hermitic Nautilus a pat on the back and a high five? That card feels like a super efficient design and I really loved playing it in my UB artifacts deck in my first ever prerelease. It and Oaken Siren served me very well!

Will do.

Artifacts Hermitic Nautilus High Fives Nautilus Oaken Siren Prerelease Sealed Format Siren

Siren Support

You asked what we would like to in a 'water plane'. I'd like to see more Siren support. There's a couple around a goad theme, but I'd like to see more sirens that force your opponents into doing things. Maybe force them play an instant or sorcery from their hand on another opponent. Drain them of resources, etc.

More Sirens, got it.

Goad Instants Siren Sorceries Your Hand

Siren vs Harpy Game Difference

In MTG, what's the difference between a Siren and a Harpy?

Sirens sing a song that lure you to your death. Harpies don’t do that at all.

Harpy Pop Culture Siren

Legendary Siren Possibility

If or when, Legendary Siren?

I assume if.

If/When Siren

Color Assignment Shift

Is the Sirens Call/Netling Imp effects still in Blue or Black?

It’s in blue and red now.

Black Blue Imp Red Siren

Ixalan Tribal Dynamics

Ixalan definitely feels as though it would have gained from having the tribal card type (or conversely suffers for its loss, given how the Limited format has been received at least by commentators and pros). Relevant, balanced Limited interactions like using Siren's Ruse to equip Pirate's Cutlass, Deeproot Waters triggering off noncreature cards (and noncreature incentives to play Deeproot Champion) etc. Nothing much like the Lorwyn Merfolk 'control' archetype seems possible, which is a shame.

Innistrad is the set where we abandoned Tribal. The set has tribal components and using Tribal just barely mattered. It’s easy to focus on the 5% that works and skip the 95% that doesn’t.

Card Types Champion Deeproot Champion Deeproot Waters Equip Innistrad Ixalan Kindred / Typal Limited Lorwyn Merfolk Non-creatures Pirate Pirate's Cutlass Siren Siren's Ruse

Avens vs Sirens vs Harpies

Avens appear more bird-like from the head-up and have both wings and arms, IIRC. Sirens don't appear to have talon feet, arms that have both wings and hands on one limb, and have bird-human-hybrid faces. Harpies look to have human heads and torsos (with with some monstrous features occasionally), wings for arms, and sometimes talon feet.

FYI

Bird Human Hybrid Siren

Creature Type Differences

What's the difference between a Harpy, a Siren, and a Bird that is an Aven?

Attitude. : )

Bird Harpy Siren

Theros Cards Insights

So today is my birthday and I was wondering if you had anything you could share about my fave limited cards from theros, Returned Phalanx and Shipwreck Singer?

Shipwrecked Singer came about because we realized that Sirens had two defining qualities - they lured people and they killed them. We realized we could do the first in blue as forced attack and the second in black as a withering effect on attackers. We purposefully only put a tap on the black ability so you could use them together and lure creatures to their death. Perfect black and blue card. Happy Birthday!

Birthday Black Blue Creatures Limited Returned Phalanx Shipwreck Singer Siren Tap / Untap Theros

Missing Siren's Call

Why no Siren's Call in Theros block?

Not every thematically relevant reprint works out or necessarily fits in a top down set.

Card Printing Reprints Siren Siren's Call Theros Top Down

Legendary Creature Types

Some non-bestial creature types that haven't gotten a Legendary yet: Berserker, Devil, Djinn, Efreet, Siren, Specter. (And a Skeleton that isn't a boat or dragon.)

Hmmm…

Berserker Creatures Devil Djinns Dragon Efreets Siren Skeleton Specter

Goblin Diplomat Abilities

"That ability [Goblin Diplomats] started in Blue in Alpha (on Siren’s Call), then appeared in Black for a while (on cards like Norytt). " Nettling Imp was black and in Alpha : )

Fair enough.

Alpha Black Blue Goblin Goblin Diplomats Imp Nettling Imp Siren

Goblin Diplomats Trivia

Hey MaRo. Today is my birthday and I was hoping I could get some trivia on one of my favorite cards, Goblin Diplomats!. Have a wonderful day!

That ability started in Blue in Alpha (on Siren’s Call), then appeared in Black for a while (on cards like Norytt). It is now in Red (and occasionally Blue). Happy Birthday!

Alpha Birthday Black Blue Goblin Goblin Diplomats Mark Rosewater Red Siren

War-Wing Siren Critique

I really think that the biggest flavor failure of JOU was War-Wing SIren. Nice card, great flavor text - but there's nothing mechanically "leading" about her at all. No card draw or even scry-like informing, no buffing other creatures, nothing at all.

Um, she gets bigger. White and green were the only two colors to have access to +1/+1 counters before Journey but in it we spread around the ability to play nicely with strive.

Card Draw Colors Creatures Flavor Green Scry Siren Strive War-Wing Siren White

Blue Attack Forcing

why has forcing creatures to attack become a blue thing? isn't it a case of robbing from the poor (red) to give to the rich?

If you go back to Alpha (on Siren’s Call), you’ll see that forcing an attack has been a blue thing for a long time. It’s not an ability we do all that much but blue is secondary in it while red is primary.

Alpha Blue Creatures Primary Red Secondary Siren

Siren Call of Kamigawa

Blogatog just can't seem to resist the siren's call of Kamigawa...

I try. I try.

Kamigawa Siren Siren's Call

Errata Philosophy

It seems like cards from before 'defender' was a keyword that referenced 'non-Wall' creatures should be errata-ed to 'non-defender' creatures. Siren's Call, for example seems to be trying to avoid punishing creatures for being defenders or having summoning sickness; however, it would kill a Gatecreeper Vine. Any chance this will be changed?

We try to avoid making errata that changes how cards work.

Creatures Defender Errata Gatecreeper Vine Gates Keywords Siren Siren's Call Wall

Podcast Recording Authenticity

Listening to your podcast, is that really while you're driving? Did you have to edit anything out like horns or sirens?

I 100% am driving to work. If you listen in the background you can hear things like me being on the freeway. The podcast is super low tech. I edit nothing. I hit play when I pull out of my garage and hit stop when I park at work. Everything in between you guys get to hear.

Drive to Work Siren